Bottle Bay neighborhood asks Bonner County to consider quiet‑zone checklist for train horns

A resident group from Bottle Bay Road on Oct. 7 asked Bonner County commissioners to place a neighborhood‑developed "quiet‑zone checklist" on a future agenda and authorize preliminary scoping to explore establishing a railroad quiet zone along the corridor.

"My big ask today is simply that we get this checklist put on the agenda where it can have ... the agenda item would be, may we please enact phase 1?" resident Matt Loam told the board. Loam, who said his group calls itself "community shareholders," described months of volunteer work preparing a step‑by‑step checklist intended to address funding, engineering and the interagency approvals needed from the Federal Railroad Administration, BNSF Railway and the county. He said his neighborhood expects to raise private funds for the work and that the group intends to shoulder much of the administrative effort so county staff and Road & Bridge are not overburdened.

County staff confirmed they have been in communications with Loam and with county counsel about the document. The board's attorney transition delayed legal review; commissioners said the item will be brought forward for board consideration after legal review and when staff and counsel have a level of comfort with the checklist language and coordination plan.

Why it matters: Quiet zones require coordinated action among federal regulators, the railroad, the local road owner and sometimes local funding; neighborhood advocacy and an agreed process are the first steps in that multi‑agency undertaking.

What happens next: County staff will continue legal review with the board's new counsel; the resident group asked to begin a Phase 1 scoping to identify an engineering consultant and estimate costs before the board considers formal authorization.